the boats man

Oman is blessed with many wadis. In Arabic language, 'Wadi' means a river. In some of the wadis water flows throughout the year, but most of them remain dry except for the rainy season. When it rains, wadis can get flooded very fast, and every year some calamities are reported in the local newspapers. In muscat city, some of the wadis got transformed to roads and in some places the construction activities are encroaching into the wadis.

Wadi Bani Khalid is about 200 kms away from Muscat. We reached there, after an overnight camping at wahiba sands. it's an importnat tourist destination in Oman. Water flows throughout the yeart in this wadi, and the lush green surroundings makes it more attractive.

It is almost noon and we are searching for a place to settle down and then to have a dip in the in the wadi. The place is already busy with people. Finally, we found a place in a nearby farm. We enjoyed sitting under the shadows of the palmgrove. Some already began preparing the lunch. Fetching water for cooking is not difficult, we have a small canal running through the farm. These small canals can been seen everywhere around and it is carrying water from the wadi for irrigating the date farm.
Meanwhile, we learned that there is a cave somewhere up in the wadi. So we headed towards the cave. It is a big cave of natural rock formation, and it is a few kilometers long. It is quite dark inside, and occasionally you have small pools of water. We have been told to carry a torch and to be ready to get drenched in water. With great enthusiasm, we reached near the cave, but the inclement weather conditions of the day, deterred us from going in.

We spent some time climbing the rocks and watching the kids diving into the river. Standing in the wadi, one can see the hills around with layered rocks. The water in the wadi is crystal clear and it looks bluish from a distance.
It is afternoon, and we have to pack things to return to muscat. Our car is parked at a distance and to carry all the stuff to the car requires some help. Boys from the local village came with a small cart to transport our baggage to the car.Wadi Bin Khalid is one of the biggest of its kind in Oman. It beckons tourists throughout the year. The images of this wadi remains fresh in memory and the experience unforgettable.